Should I skip EPCOT with little ones?

[newdeal]

I am an adult now but the first time I went to Disney I was 6 months old and we went almost every year when I was in elementary school. I never remember a time that Epcot wasn't my favourite park, it was especially my favourite when I was young, unfortunately now its getting a bit dated and what was very futuristic is now not so much but its still a fun park none the less. I would personally skip world showcase with kids though, we never did much there when I was young and the last trip I had I decided I needed to see the whole thing, we broke it up into 2 days because it got a bit boring and so we went to do some of the other epcot rides half way through the day. I remember I also didn't like world showcase when I was young because standing for the movies in the theater in the rounds really hurt my legs since I was too short to use the leaners

[badblackpug]

We didn't really do the World Showcase too much when they were that small. We kinda breezed through it, but there is a lot to do in the Future World side.

[MissLiz]

We spend quite a lot of time at Epcot. We have since our first trip with our oldest DD at 18months. There really is so much to do and I feel like it's the park that the kids can have a little freedom in. There is just so much room...all the walkways are large, the people are spread out more, and you can actually let your kids go a little (not too much, but more than other parks).

[cc-atl]

My kids had just turned 3 and 5 before our last trip in 2008. They both really enjoyed Epcot.

They enjoyed Nemo and Imagination. Suprisingly the both enjoyed the Ellen Energy Adventure ride. They also like Maelstrom and the ride in Mexico. But most of all they enjoyed meeting the various characters in the different countries - Sleeping Beauty and Belle and the Beast in France, Jasmin and Aladdin in Morroco, Mulan in China, Sombrero Donald in Mexico, etc.

We also went to the princess dinner at Akerhaus.

If choosing between Magic Kingdom and Epcot for little kids I would certainly choose the Magic Kingdom. But if you can do Epcot I am pretty sure your kids would enjoy it.

[rickg15]

Do you have to skip a park? My opinion is that IF you have to skip one of the parks Epcot is the one to skip with little ones.

[justamy27]

My kids are 6 and 3 and they love Epcot. The like Test Track, Soarin, Turtle Talk...pretty much everything I do except they didn't mind Ellen, which I am not a fan of.

[cwnhokie]

We love EPCOT. The first year we went my DSs were 4 and 2. We only spent an evening there and vowed to spend a whole day the next time. I think we all like that it is more relaxed and low key. It gives them time to just explore and recoup from the nonstop stimulation of the other parks. We usually do the Kidcot stations and they love collecting something from each country, while Dad and I get to check out the countries.

[dawneg]

One important note about your 4-year-old: he/she will need to be 40 inches tall for Soarin' and Test Track. My 4 and 7 year-old boys loved both on a recent visit, but my 4-year-old just squeaked by on height.

[FigmentChick]

Well....I don't know whether my advice will help, as my children are nerds like their mother, so we took them to Epct. The first time we went with children (2006), my daughter was 6.5 and my son was about to turn 5. They loved Epcot. The climbed on the fire truck (like they can't do that at home - I'm a volunteer firefighter), they made paper, they loved Living with the Seas and The Land. World Showcase allowed them to color masks and talk to people of different cultures....they ate it up! It's still their favorite park I'm happy to say (and mine, too, of course!).

[cwnhokie]

Originally Posted by FigmentChick

Well....I don't know whether my advice will help, as my children are nerds like their mother, so we took them to Epct. The first time we went with children (2006), my daughter was 6.5 and my son was about to turn 5. They loved Epcot. The climbed on the fire truck (like they can't do that at home - I'm a volunteer firefighter), they made paper, they loved Living with the Seas and The Land. World Showcase allowed them to color masks and talk to people of different cultures....they ate it up! It's still their favorite park I'm happy to say (and mine, too, of course!).

LOL! My DH and I were laughing this past summer. We couldn't have been more pleased that our boys 8, 6 and 2 were perfectly content spending all of their time in Innovations, which was air conditioned and not very crowded. They could care less about Soarin, which was out of fast passes and an hour wait.

[RandFamily]

My kids have always loved EPCOT the best!! I recommend you don't skip it and try to catch the rides that others have posted here. In recent years, they have geared EPCOT much more to younger children than in the past.

[PiperPizzaz]

It is my 4 yo's favorite park! He LOVES Test Track, soarin', nemo and mission space, spaceship earth, imagination with figment but, he also loves the countries. He is really into geography. The kidcot stuff around world showcase is really fun!

[HeidiGW]

I agree with the other posters, all great advice. My kids, even as infants, loved Illuminations...don't want to miss the spinning globe and fireworks!
BUT one of the best reasons is all the food. My kids' love the restaurants and eat around the world. It is a great way to sample foods other than chicken nuggets and fries. My most picky eater, age 12, now LOVES Japanese food because we ate at Teppan Edo when she was seven. She even tried the veggies...it was nothing short of a miracle! It's difficult to refuse, even for little kids, to try the native cuisine when offered by so pleasantly...or by a hottie. Two of my girls, still talk about "Roberto" at Tuttio Italia. For him, they ate sauce, instead of plain, on their noodles!!! ha!

[Mom2darlingboys]

Epcot is my kids' favorite park - and what a shame it would be to miss Soarin'. The little ones would love that ride, it really is magical.

[momto2js]

It is not my favorite park with my 1 and 3 year old. They enjoy Nemo and a few other things but it is a lot of walking for a little entertainment. I could also have a bit of bais. I HATED EPCOT as a kid, and it is still not my favorite. If you do go, Energy is a 45 minute ride, DH learned this the hard way with my oldest that was about 18 months at the time. It was a LONG 45 minutes. Nuclear winter wouldn't get me back on Energy with my kids!